Peacock baseball took on the Bearcats in a doubleheader on Saturday, dropping game one 3-0 and coming up short in game two, 6-5. Upper Iowa shifted to 15-21 overall and 10-13 in conference action.
GAME ONE: UIU-0, MCK-3
Bryce Hall paced the Peacocks at the plate in game one with two of the team's five hits.
Isaiah Maes (4-3) took the loss on the mound after four innings of work, allowing three five hits and three runs.
William Kiburis tossed two innings in relief, allowing zero runs, zero hits and did not walk a single batter.
The Bearcats scored their first run of the game in the opening frame after a single to center field brought around one for the early advantage. They added to their total in the third inning on a two-run home run, bolstering the score to 3-0, which held for the remainder of the contest.
Upper Iowa had the bases loaded in the fourth inning, but were unable to bring anyone around as they flied out in their next plate appearance.
GAME TWO: UIU-5, MCK-6
In game two, the Peacocks tallied 11 hits while the Bearcats recorded 7.
Brock Zimmer,
Thane Meiners,
Jared Grams and
Paul Safranski each chipped in two hits.
Upper Iowa struck first in the top of the first inning when
Ethan Sawyer scored on a bases-loaded walk drawn by Grams. McKendree quickly answered in the bottom half with an RBI double tied the game.
The Bearcats pulled ahead in the third, scoring on a passed ball before launching a two-run homer to left, giving McKendree a 4–1 advantage.
The Peacocks chipped away in the fifth with an RBI groundout from Sawyer, scoring Safranski. However, McKendree added insurance in the bottom of the frame with an RBI single, going ahead 5-2.
The Peacocks responded in the sixth, scoring two unearned runs—one on a throwing error and another on a sacrifice fly by Sawyer—cutting the deficit to 5-4.
McKendree regained a two-run cushion in the bottom of the sixth after driving in another run on a fielder's choice. In the seventh, the Peacocks made it a one-run game with an RBI single from Grams, but their rally fell just short, sealing the 6–5 win for McKendree.
JJ Vargas (0-2) took the loss on the mound after five innings of work, allowing seven hits and five runs. He rung up four batters in his outing.
Peacock baseball is back in action next weekend against UMSL in St. Louis, Mo., April 17-19.
